Village News

Village will continue to move forward despite the arrest of the mayor

August 31, 2017

The Village of Stillwater will continue to move forward, officials say, despite the surprising arrest today of Mayor Rick Nelson on child pornography charges.

"This has been an incredibly difficult day for the Village of Stillwater and we're certainly going to be facing some challenging times ahead," said Deputy Mayor Frank Tatum. "But we are a very dedicated group and I am confident that we will get past this. In the meantime, we have an important job to do and the village and its residents are still our No. 1 priority."

Tatum added that the Village Board will meet in the coming days to plan a course of action moving forward.

According to the Times Union newspaper and other media reports, Mayor Nelson faces child pornography charges after, State Police said, they linked him to downloaded photographs depicting a sexual performance by a child.

The 62-year-old was arrested after the trooper's Computer Crime Unit launched an investigation of the possibility a Stillwater IP address was being used to download child pornography.

The investigation led to the a search of Nelson home and his subsequent arrest, troopers said.

State Police said there is no evidence so far that suggests Nelson was using computers at Village Hall to view child pornography.

Nelson was charged with one felony count each of promoting a sexual performance by a child and possessing a sexual performance by a child. He was arraigned in Saratoga Town Court and sent to the county jail on $25,000 bail. He's due back in court on Sept. 6.